QuestionHi me again..the girl who asked about the painkillers. I will be honest with you in telling you that i believe i'm at a point with the meds that i take them when i don't always need them. Before i found out i was pregnant i was taking about five a day. Honestly i can't take anymore than six a day because the one time i did i got sick to my stomach. So no..i'm not popping them two or three at a time..i'll take one and maybe a few hours later i'll take another..etc..i have been taking them for almost six years..since my accident. I found out i was prego when i was already three and a half monthes along..( i've never had regular periods) so i was taking four to five pills a day before i found out. As soon as i found out i cut back to two to three a day. I tried stopping but i don't know if it was all in my head but my back would kill after three days without them. Plus i watched Dr. Phil tell a pregnantlady who was addicted to vicodin to keep taking the pills throughout her pregnancy so she wouldnt miscarry...that scared me. That is when i vowed that if i needed to take them i would never take more than three spaced out in the day. The reason i didn't want to tell my doctor is because my FIRST doctor seemed judgemental so i switched to another doctor and i didn't tell her i was taking them daily. I feel guilty enough..I don't want to take ANY at all in the week or two before my delivery so that the baby may have a chance to withdraw in the womb. Would that be safer for him? I hate myself for taking them while pregnant. That is how i know it's time to admit that maybe i am dependent on them. I'm just glad i'm NOT one of those people who pop 20 or more a day. I could never do that! I would be afraid it would kill ME! Please let me know if stopping them a week or so before delivery if it would help the baby have no withdrawl symptoms outside the womb. My c-section is dated for May 18th..although i don't understand why i couldn't deliver sooner seeings how i am 37 weeks along. Does a doctor have to deliver a baby if the mother requests, as long as she is full term? I was just wondering if I could tell my doctor i would like the c-section sooner than that. I'm just so afraid for my baby's health...even though my doctor says the heart beat sounds fine and the baby moves alot..i still think it's safer for him to be born sooner! If you have time to write back and answer my questions i would appreciate it..thank you very much for your time...
AnswerHi Melodie,
I don't understand why you think it would be better if the baby was born sooner that later. I don't know if a doctor would perform a C-section just by request. Because of lung maturity, they like to wait as long as possible.
I also do not know if stopping now would cause the baby to withdraw in the womb. I know it will cause you withdrawal symptoms - sleeplessness, sneezing, frequent bowel movements - sometimes uncontrollable, the heebie-jeebies, to name a few. I don't think you want to go through this now, do you? But I do understand your concern for your baby. You might want to ask one of the OB/GYN docs on All Experts about this issue.
I understand how judgmental doctors can be. You just don't feel safe talking frankly most of the time, and that is so unfortunate, especially in cases like this one.
My question for you is - are you planning to breastfeed? If so, taking 3 Vicodin a day isn't the worst thing for your baby. What would be bad is you in horrible pain and not being able to care for your baby. Vicodin is considered safe to moderately safe. Still the basic dependency and withdrawal issues exist upon weaning.
Also, if you are scheduled for a C-section you will be given narcotics during and after surgery. So, going through withdrawal now, really doesn't seem to be the best idea. This far in your pregnancy your body really doesn't need that kind of stress.
As for stopping narcotics during pregnancy and it causing a miscarriage, that is something I have never read about or heard of, but that doesn't mean it isn't true.
I hope everything works out for you and your baby. Please keep me posted, and write back as often as you like.
